


Beneath the Milky Twilight

by creeptastically



Series: Alternathstuck [3]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Humanstuck, M/M, Minor Angst, REALLY MINOR, Underage Drinking, some minor, yay for highs school parties
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-15
Updated: 2018-03-29
Packaged: 2019-03-18 21:28:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 17,450
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13690155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/creeptastically/pseuds/creeptastically
Summary: Valentine's Day is Nepeta's favorite holiday. What better way to spend it then by making sure her closest friends each have a romance of their own? The farthest thing from her mind is her own romantic aspirations.Meanwhile Terezi has some romantic realizations of her own, and has to convince Nepeta to stop trying to set her up.Will the two get their stuff together in time for the Valentine's Dance?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> What even is a beta? This is for the Valentine's gift exchange on tumblr! So princetpines this is for you! :D  
> I sat down to map this out and was like guys this will be easy, like 10,00 words and I'm done. And then I couldn't get anyone to shut the fuck up. The second half of the chapters will be up tomorrow, I swear on my life, I just didn't want the day to pass without anything to show for it.  
> All of my humanstuck takes place in the same universe pretty much? It's just cause I'm lazy. The work stands on it's own well enough.  
> One last thing, Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer is my peak wlw song, it just is. So that's what the title is from :)

Nepeta

Monday, January 29th, 3:00PM

“So are you crashing in on our session tonight?” You ask Equius. You’re practically inside your locker, looking for a folder you need to finish your english essay later that night. Sure you could organize things, like a normal person, but who had time for that in the five minutes between class? And the mere idea of staying after school any longer than you have to makes your skin crawl. No, it was just going to have to be this way. 

“Don’t you think that we are too old for such juvenile pursuits?” Equius responds. He leans over you, plucking the folder from the pile of papers on the small top shelf. You grin and grab it from him. He’s so much better at locating things then you are.

Equius had been your neighbor for the first ten years of your life. He’s two years older than you and lives on a farm. He caught you sneaking around the barn when when you were six and he was eight and the rest is history. He had been your sidekick in many adventures, and had talked you out of more dangerous pursuits then you would like to admit. He taught you how to horseback ride when you were seven and you had given him a kitten for his tenth birthday. Even when your mom had gotten remarried and you had moved, you and Equius had stayed close. 

Still, you admit, he can be a bit of an elitist ass. 

“Not at all, especially since Aradia is going to be there…” you trail off, giving him a sly smile. Equius goes red, and locks his jaw.

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” he says. You shrug. Equius is the worst at secrets, and everyone knows how into Aradia he’s been. Even if she does things he thinks are ‘juvenile’. 

“I’m just saying she’ll be there.” You shove the folder into your backpack, not really concerned with how crumpled it might get. Across the hall you spots the distinct color of Terezi’s turquoise hair. You smile, and swing your backpack over your shoulder. She’s just the person you’ve been been waiting for. 

“I’ll see you tonight Equius! And remember girls don’t like it when you insult their interests.” You kiss his cheek and dart into the crowd. 

You think being small is double edged sword. It’s easier to dodge and squeeze your way through the crowded high school halls, but it’s really hard to get noticed by the person you’re chasing. Especially if that person was blind. 

“Terezi!” You shout. You see her pause, head craneing around as if hoping to sniff you out. It’s been ages since Terezi’s done anything close to sniffing someone, but she’s still known to lick if you get too close.

Terezi is only a year older than you, and taller as if to prove it. She had dyed her hair turquoise back in August with the help of her older sister. Terezi is a bit of scene kid, and you’re a bit jealous because of it. Your mother would never let you bleach and then dye your hair, you’re lucky if you can get away with the cheap clip-ins from Hot Topic. She’s also got her nose pierced, just little stud, but you think it’s the coolest thing. So yeah, you’re a little envious, but you’re also a little awestruck.

“Is that you kitten?” Terezi asks when you catch up to her. You had tapped her shoulder twice, indicating it was someone she knew.

“Sure is!” You chirp. She smiles widely, teeth perfectly straight. You run your tongue over your braces hesitantly. Terezi can’t see them but you chose green bands last week and they make the rest of your teeth seem kind of green in comparison. Everyone else’s teeth just make you jealous.

“Excellent, now is Mr. Vantas around?” She cocks her head, as if listening for his breathing. 

“You know as well as I do that he’s not,” you snort. Karkat has never once shut up in the entire time you’ve known him. It’s only worse now that you live together. 

“Even better, so are you ready for tonight?” Terezi starts walking again, her cane held out in front of her. You follow close behind, taking advantage of the wide berth students tend to give her. Terezi is not shy with her cane and the student population long ago learned to either move out of the way or get hit.

“Of course I am. It’s been awhile since I’ve gotten to host a session at my house!” You catch sight of Sollux talking to John and wave him over.

“Whats up nerds?” Sollux asks, falling into step beside you. It’s impressive to say the least. He's in the same grade as you are but is at least a foot taller.

“You’ve come to bum another ride have you Mr. Appleberry,” Terezi comments. Sollux rolls his eyes at you. 

“You know Latula is going to my house anyways, TZ,” he says. 

“And yet no one has ever invited you to come along,” she teases. You giggle. Mituna and Latula have been going out since middle school. The second Latula was old enough to drive it became her responsibility to shuttle Terezi safely to and from school. Of course she wasn’t going to make the Captor brothers take the bus when their house was on the way there.

“Did you ask Feferi to the dance yet Sollux?” You ask, feigning disinterest. Feferi has been gushing about him for months, and you’re hoping he took your hint last week to get a move on. However Sollux makes a face. 

“The Valentine’s Day dance?”

“Technically Valentine’s Day is on Wednesday but yeah that dance.” You know you’re nitpicking but it’s important. Feferi would be thrilled and Sollux needs to get out more. 

“I don’t think I’m the pink fuzzy hearts kind of guy, AC,” he says. His face is still crunched up. Terezi elbows him.

“Not into sucking face yet?” She asks. He squawks, cheeks coloring. You roll your eyes. He’s lucky she can’t see him.

“That’s not it!” He shouts. They’ve made it outside now, and Terezi is steering them towards student parking. You pause. You always take the bus home, Kankri doesn’t have his license yet.

“I’ll see you tonight Terezi! Sollux think about it!” You give a go at affectionately ruffling both of their heads, but it’s hard because you’re so short. They say goodbye, Terezi grinning like fool and you head towards the other side of the parking lot.

It’s easy to find Karkat even in the mass of students that are leaving the building. As you’ve previously mentioned, he never stops talking.

“I’m just saying that she deserves better! That guy is a fuck canoe and has never treated her right!” Karkat says, bitching to a noncommittal Dave. Dave’s head is down and he’s typing away on his phone. 

“Sure, sure, Vantas,” he says. You hip check Karkat who shrieks. Dave cracks a grin.

“Hey mini-Vantas,” he greets you.

“Still not a Vantas, Strider,” you say. Karkat scowls.

“Hey Nepeta, I’m just finishing up,” he explains.

“If we miss again Kankri is going to be pissed,” you tell him. 

“Kankri can shove his opinion up his ass into his over inflated head,” Karkat bites out.

“We could take you home,” Dave offers. You shake your head. You like Dave well enough but Hal terrifies you. 

“Thanks, but it’s DnD night and it’s my turn to host,” you tell him. Karkat groans loudly.

“I didn’t know the freak squad was coming over,” he complains, “what about Arowin?”

“Mom said it was ok,” you protest. He grumbles and you frown at him. 

People always think you and Karkat are twins. You both have short black messy hair, and round faces. You’re both short and of course you both have similar interests in romance but that’s about where the similarities end. You and Karkat have birthdays on both sides of summer. When you were eight you had the biggest crush on him because he was the only person who watched the same tv shows you did. And then when the two of you were ten your mom married his dad. Six years later and you want to kick your elementary school self in the knees. 

The Vantas family is loud. Between Kankri’s lectures and Karkat’s tirades there is never a moment of peace. Your older sister Muelin is deaf and never had to worry about it when she was home but It drives you insane. It scares the cats too. And now there’s little Arowin too. You like Arowin, but you had never thought you’d have another sister around. She was a bit of a surprise. 

“Whatever, lets get on the bus. See you, asshole.” Karkat shoves Dave aside before heading to the bus. 

“Catch you later, Vantas, not-Vantas.”

Kankri pointedly doesn’t sit with near either of you on the bus, but you and Karkat shove together into one seat. He talks your ear off about how Vriska and Tavros had better keep it civil this time. He plays it like he’s concerned for your youngest siblings sensibilities but you know he’s just avoiding talking about Terezi. 

Terezi and Karkat had dated for about three months last year and Karkat still isn’t over it. It’s been one of your side projects but Karkat is hard to deal with. He has his own romantic aspirations.

“Hey, so you’re going to the dance right?” You ask him, cutting him off mid sentence. 

“I mean I don’t have a date. It’s fucking humiliating to go to a romantic dance without a partner you know?” He shrugs.

“Yeah but if you did have a date, would you go?” You prod. This dance could be the perfect opportunity to get him over Terezi.

“Probably, don’t you go doing anything though. It’s really fucking weird to set up all your friends for them, you know that right?” He eyes you carefully and you avoid his gaze.

“Not if they ask me for it,” you argue.

“Well this is me asking you not to,” he insists. 

“Fine, I’ll try and stay out of it,” you say. You’re not going to though. Terezi is one of your favorite people and you miss having her over the house. 

“Sollux is going to ask Feferi you know, you tell him. Karkat snorts.

“There is no way in hell he’s going to get the balls to do that.”

“Sure he is! I’ve got a plan!” You insist.

“Okay, I’ll bite, but only because Sollux is an even bigger disaster then I am. What’s your shit plan?”

You smile. He may fight it, but Karkat loves to meddle just as much as you do.

The walk from your bus stop to the house is short but Kankri spends the whole time arguing with Karkat about proper manners, and watching his language. You manage to avoid the lecture by jogging ahead. 

You breeze past your mom and Arowin in the kitchen and hole yourself up in your room. It’s actually your’s and Muelin’s room but with Muelin away at college you have free domain for now. You dig your laptop out from under your bed and settle in, pulling up a spreadsheet. 

Your name is Nepeta Leijon. You’re sixteen years old and a sophomore at Alternia Area High School. You have two step brothers, one sister, and one half sister. Your best friend is Equius Zahhak. Your favorite holiday is quickly approaching, the dance is a little over two weeks away and you have roughly ten single friends.

You’ve got a lot of work to do.

\----------------------

Terezi

Monday January 29th 3:10 PM

“So how’s that working out?” Sollux asks, smirk evident in his tone. You reach out and tug his ear, relishing the way he yelps in pain.

“As you well know, Sollux, a smart woman never reveals her secrets. Especially to someone who doesn’t have a leg to stand on himself!” You raise your eyebrows at him, and can tell he’s been properly chastised when he mumbles his apology. You don’t like it when people make fun of her, she only has everyone’s best interests at heart. 

Nepeta has scampered away to head home. Time and time again you hope she’ll stay long enough that you’ll be able to offer her a ride, but it hasn’t happened yet. Nepeta’s world is one of perfectly controlled chaos, something that only she can navigate. She pushes the limit, but she always makes the bus. 

You and Sollux head into the parking lot. If it was quieter or if there was nobody else was driving, you would be able to navigate it easily. As it is though, you’re glad that Sollux is there to guide you through it. Mituna and Latula are already there, and waiting impatiently for the two of you to catch up.

Latula is your older sister, and she’s always been supportive but she hates driving. To be fair, Mituna doesn’t like it much either. Anything is better than the bus though and since Mituna can’t drive himself places, it comes down to Latula. Still it makes the ride home always tense one, but soon enough the Captors are gone and you’re home free. 

The house is always exactly the same, and you appreciate that. It may take only two seconds to move the chair back after you’ve gotten up, but you’ve long since learned to relish the gesture that most of society doesn’t even think about. 

You make your way out of the car and through the door with no problem. You instinctively count the steps from the garage - eleven - and then you’re in the kitchen. You can already hear your mom typing away on the computer. 

“Hey there Rez,” she greets you, “and Tula!” The click of keys doesn’t stop and you grin. You hope her case is going well.

“Mother, it’s that time of week again,” you declare. You head straight for the fridge, and pull the milk from its spot. Then you get your favorite cereal, captain crunch. It’s around this point that Latula tries to takes over.

“Let’s not revisit the great sea of January, shall we?” She scolds. You scowl at her. 

“I’m getting better! How will I survive college if I am not allowed to pour cereal?” You can tell from the silence that your mom and your sister are having a conversation with their eyes. It is an almost constant occurrence since you brought up college a couple months ago. But it was time to face facts, you’re a junior in high school and college is coming up. 

“Let her have it Tula,” your mom says. 

“Fine,” and you can hear the eye roll in her tone but you happily take the jug. Cereal is your favorite food, and you will not be parted from it. 

You spill about a glass worth on the table, but you do get your bowl ready. Latula only grumbles a bit when she helps clean it up.

“So, it’s Dungeons and Dragons night, right?” Your Mom asks. But you know she knows it is. You only ever get to eat cereal for dinner on DnD night. 

You nod, mouth full of food. 

“It’s at the Vantas’s tonight isn’t it?” Latula teases.

“It is in fact at the Leijon-Vantas coalition,” you chirp. You know she’s teasing because Karkat can barely handle being in the same school as you let alone having you be in his house. But you’re just excited to get to see Nepeta again. Campaign is always much better when she takes the time to set up the basement. You like how the mood shifts when you’re all there and her mom makes the best snacks. 

“How is Karkat?” Your mom asks. You shrug. Karkat is literally the farthest thing from your mind right now. Your character had been stuck in a pretty sticky situation last week and you’re going over what moves you could make to get him out of it.

You finish your food with your mind still occupied. You manage to get the bowl to the sink before heading towards your room to get your stuff together. 

A lot of your life depends on your memorization of where you put things and muscle memory. Luckily, you have an excellent memory. This includes where pretty much everything is in your room.You have no idea if it could be considered clean, but it is consistent. Your blankets are piled in the middle of your bed and your closet is just as bad, but you know how they’re sorted and can tell the difference between them without much trouble. You dig your dragon hood out from the corner where you keep it stored.

The cape is big and the softest thing you own. When Kanaya made it for you on your fifteenth birthday you had asked for it to be red. You like the idea of red even if you don’t exactly what red looks like. Red is what people tell you the color of cherries are, of watermelon and strawberries and apples and raspberries. Of rubies, roses and licorice. You think it sounds bold, and you’re definitely a bold person.

Latula groans when you bring it down the stairs. You have your tablet in your other hand and your headphones already on. It’s time to get this show on the road.

Your mom takes you over to the house, and you can already hear the Karkat and Kankri going at it from their driveway. You crack a grin, and tell your mom goodbye before heading towards the noise. Nepeta meets you halfway there. 

“Kankri and Karkat are fighting about the ableist nature of the word idiot again,” she explains, sounding exasperated.

“Don’t they understand how subjective these things are?” You laugh.

“Of course not, you know how black white they are. Not that it really matters right now. Come and meet Arowin! Eridan’s already inside and he’s smitten.” She takes your hand and guides you into the house. You normally don’t let people do that, but you know that toddlers create a certain amount of walking hazard. Besides, you like how reassuring it feels to know she’s there. 

Inside the nose is even louder, with Karkat insulting insulting Kankri and Kankri passive aggressively forgiving him for his transactions. There’s a light double tap on your shoulder.

“Terezi, how are you dear?” Nepeta’s mom asks you, voice gentle.

“I’m well, thanks.” 

“We’re going to go see Arowin,” Nepeta pipes up, “Does Eridan still have her?”

“They’re in the living room. You know he’s pretty good with her...” She lets the sentence hang. Dicie Leijon-Vantas is not soft spoken, but she always talks carefully. You can tell she’s fishing for something.

“That’s because Eridan is also a toddler at heart,” you clarify. Nepeta giggles. At that moment Karkat’s dad, Silas Vantas makes himself known.

“Boys, if you don’t settle down there will be consequences!” He shouts. You jump a bit. He’s always so loud, and it takes you off guard every time.

“Let me know when Aradia and Tavros get here!” Nepeta calls, dragging you out of the room. You can still hear the argument that’s taking place in the kitchen but it’s at least a bit quieter in the living room. 

Eridan is cooing at what you presume to be the newest Vantas addition. 

“Looks like our pompous Prince has weakness,” you say. 

“Rez, behave around the baby,” he says. 

“No promises.” You sit down next to him on the couch and offer a hand to the toddler in question. She grasps it and chatters a bit. 

“Ka!” She cries. 

“Terezi, this is my little sister Arowin. She really only says Ka,” Nepeta says. 

“Karkat or Kankri?” You ask.

“Ka!”

“Oh please don’t ask that, they’re already arguing,” Nepeta groans. Eridan laughs.

“It’s definitely Kar, she says the a that way,” he explains. And you guess he would know, Eridan has been talking speech classes for years to fix is own pronunciation problems. It’s how he and Sollux know each other. 

Arowin cries again, babbling incoherently.

“You’ve already eaten dinner,” Nepeta says to her. You listen more carefully, hoping that maybe you can discern what she’s saying. It’s all just nonsense though.

“Of course you’re teaching her to sign,” Eridan scoffs. That explains everything. Babies can learn sign language before they talk a lot of the time.

“Muelin is deaf you prick,” you tell him. 

“And Mom is hard of hearing too,” Nepeta adds. You know she’s scowling at him. 

“Still…” You feel him shrug. There’s an ear-splitting shriek from the kitchen. 

“Enough!” Silas’s voice booms. 

“Nepeta your other friends are here!” Dicie calls. 

“Coming!” Nepeta takes Arowin, “You guys head towards the basement, we’ll get Tavros down in a second.

“Leave it to me Nep!” Eridan says. 

“I don’t need you to help me,” you tell him. 

“Sure, sure, Rez,” he says but he doesn’t reach for you. 

You follow him closely down the hall and descend down the basement stairs; there are eight just like you remember. Like how you expected, you sense the way Eridan’s whole demeanor changes now that you’re there.

“She really gets into this,” he whispers. You know that she’s decorated the basement like the cave again. 

“It’s roleplaying game, gotta get into it, my liege,” you tease him. You take some cautious steps forward, and settle into a seat.

It isn’t long before Silas and Nepeta are bringing Tavros down the stairs, Aradia right behind them. 

“Vriska says she’ll be fifteen minutes late,” she tells you, “so I’ll roll for her until she gets here.” 

“Excellent,” you say. You tap open the recording option on your tablet, one headphone in so you can still hear it describe the screen to you. 

You all settle in, papers shuffling and chairs squeaking. You feel a tingle of excitement and anticipation. Aradia takes a deep breath.

“So last time we were here…”

Your name is Terezi Pyrope. You’re seventeen years old and blind since birth. You have one older sister and your best friend is Vriska Serket. Monday nights are by far your favorite part the week. And you’ve never felt more at home than when you’re sandwiched in the basement of the Vantas-Leijon home.


	2. Chapter 2

Nepeta

Thursday, February 1st, 11:30 AM

“You got one too I see,” Equius says, eyeing the purple envelope that falls out of your locker when you open it. You pick it up, and the name on the front is yours written in a familiar loopy script. 

“This is weird,” you say. It’s an invite to Eridan’s sweet sixteen next Saturday. It’s going to be at his house, which you know is on the more wealthy side of town. It’s bound to be full of pretentious pricks. You don’t why we thought to invite you of all people.

“Everyone got one,” Equius explains, lips curling a bit. You give him a look.

“Everyone, everyone,” you ask, “even Gamzee?” He nods, looking more disgusted by the minute. You mull that over for a minute. An event with everyone at it before the dance would be helpful for your plans. Even if that event was going to be a one man Eridan show.

“Are you sitting with me at lunch today?” You ask Equius. He shakes his head. 

“I have previous arrangements with the birthday boy,” he explains. He’s still frowning. Eridan is the kind of person Equius thinks he should be hanging out with, he’s well off and full of connections, but you know they find each other insufferable. You shrug.

“Your loss, I’ll see you after school then!” You hug him goodbye before heading towards the lunch room. You know exactly which group you’re heading towards today.

The people you’re trying to find is a gathering of what you consider cool kids. They’re all pierced and have dark or dyed hair. Meenah even has a tattoo on her arm. They’ve got various concert tees, and you know that Gamzee, Vriska and Meenah all smoke. They intimidate you, and often make you feel younger than you already are.

Still, you want to talk to Terezi and see if she’s going to go to this ridiculous party. 

“Hey there kitty sister,” Gamzee drawls when you approach the table. 

Gamzee is the same age as Terezi and Vriska. Over the summer he had tamed his afro into dreads, citing that it was a bit easier to care of. You think it would be easiest to cut it off, that’s what you did, but Gamzee’s mind has never made any sense to you.

“Kitten!” Terezi says brightly. She motions for you to sit on her other side. Vriska scowls but you brush it off. Everything pisses Vriska off. You don’t think you’ve seen her genuinely smile since fifth grade.

“Hi guys,” you greet them. Tavros smiles at you. He looks just as out of place here as you do, but his mohawk blends him in a little better. You know he only sits here to with Gamzee.

“How did you do on the quiz this morning?” He asks. You shrug.

“Dr. Scratch can eat it,” you tell him. Meenah barks out a laugh and if anything Vriska looks even more put out. 

“Math is the most confusing of mysteries,” Gamzee comments. 

“No it’s not, you’re just lazy, Makara,” Vriska says, voice acidic. 

“Grape soda is not lazy, just slow. Everyone gets there in their own time Vriska,” Terezi chides, voice sing-song. Gamzee chuffs out a laugh.

“Ain’t nothin’ slow about it chica, it’s just not there.” Terezi screws her face into a frown and Tavros takes his hand.

“Gamz…” 

“It’s fine Gamzee, I suck at math too,” you point out. You’re not really here for a Gamzee pity party.

“You don’t even need geometry after you graduate anyways,” Meenah says. 

“That’s not true,” Terezi argues. 

“Sure it is,” Meenah insists.

“Guys, uh, can we please, not,” Tavros cuts in. You smile. He’s the same age as you and you guys have econ together first period. You wish you still had him to match up with someone, he’s so sweet, but he’s has been dating Gamzee since the eighth grade.

“Did you guys get invited to Eridan’s party?” You ask them, changing the subject. The group laughs. 

“I think he invited the whole school,” Meenah says nastily. You roll your eyes.

“Definitely not.”

“Yeah, but I don’t think I’m going to that prick fest,” Vriska says.

“I think we’re going,” Tavros chimes in. Gamzee nods along. 

“Alway use an excuse to get down with my best mother fucker,” he says. He smiles at Tavros, face fond. You think it’s kind of cute how utterly soft these two are for each other. You couldn’t have picked better yourself.

“Eridouche isn’t that bad and he has a pool. There are worse things to do on a Saturday night.” Terezi reasons. 

“I’d literally rather die,” Meenah says, “but I think my sweet sister is going.” Oh, you had forgotten that Feferi and Meenah were related.

“Equius wants to go,” you tell them. 

“Well if your boyfriend wants to go-”

“Vriska!” Terezi cuts her off. You resist the urge to gag. People thinking you and Equius were dating is nothing new but you know Vriska just does it to get a rise out of you. 

“Aradia is going,” Tavros supplies helpfully. As her best friend he’s as privy to their weird romance as you are.

“I’ll make sure to tell him,” you say. Vriska rolls her eyes again and glares at Terezi. It’s a pointless, if satisfying, endeavour. But the person who you really came here to ask hasn’t confirmed yet. 

“So you’ll be going Terezi?” You ask her. She looks thoughtful. 

“Well as I’ve stated he does have a pool, but on the other hand who knows what kind of kids will be there.” 

“I’m sure Dave will make an appearance,” you tell her. Terezi is notoriously hard to pin down. Other than her brief stint with Karkat you don’t think she’s dated anyone. You had thought for awhile that maybe she and Sollux had some chemistry, but then Sollux was so obviously into Feferi so that was a no go. Vriska has been so obviously trying to date her for years, but Terezi seems to have no interest in making them anything more than friends. You don’t know if it’s because she’s straight or if she knows that no one in their right mind would date the disaster that is Vriska. You’re thinking she and Dave have been flirting more often lately but he’s just as hard to figure out as she is.

“He’ll probably cause a scene,” she says. She smiles sharply, looking excited. 

“Strider always causes a scene,” Vriska adds. She’s pulled out her phone, and is scrolling through it. Her face is a mask of superior indifference. You admire the effort she puts into looking disinterested to a blind person. You share a look with Tavros, who just shrugs. 

“Well are you going to see anyone special, kitten?” Terezi asks you, not fooled at all by your casual questioning. 

You feel your face heat and you’re glad she can’t see it. Your love life has not been in your own radar since the Karkat debacle. 

“No, but all of our friends are tragically single. I have plenty to do,” you tell her. Vriska snorts, but doesn’t say anything and Terezi cackles.

“If you say so, it’s not so bad to take an interest in yourself every once in awhile,” she muses.

“I’m perfectly fine,” you insist. She’s not getting out of it this time. You’re determined to hook Terezi up with someone. Hopefully it would drag Karkat out of his funk.

“Well let me know if I can do anything to help,” she offers. 

\-----------------------------------

Terezi

Thursday, February 1st 1:45 PM

“You aren’t really going to that pill’s birthday party are you?” Vriska asks you when you leave English class. 

“Why not, he’s our bard after all!” You say. The hallway is crowded and loud, but you don’t bother with your cane. You and Vriska have the next class together as well. It’s easier to walk with her, your shoulders brushing to keep you on track. 

“Because it’s going to be laaaaaaaame” she whines. 

“I’m insulted you think we’re lame,” you respond cheekily. 

“I don’t think we’re lame, I think Mr. Thinks He’s God’s Gift to Mankind is lame,” she explains, tone petulant. 

“It’s not like we’ve got anything better to do,” you point out.

“I do! I’ve got lots of things going on! Plenty of irons in the fire!” You sigh

“Well, I don’t, and it’ll be more fun if you’re there too.” You grin when she mumbles in response. Vriska is definitely going to be at that party.


	3. Chapter 3

Nepeta

Friday, February 2nd, 3:00 PM

“Listen all you’ve got to do is ask her if she’ll go with you to Eridan’s party,” you tell Sollux seriously. He looks kind of green, and is scowling furiously at you. 

You have cornered Sollux at his locker and you’re determined to get him to agree with your plan. It’s for his own good after all, he’d be so happy with Feferi. 

“Why would I do that? I don’t even want to go to that asshole’s party!” He tells you. You roll your eyes. Back in fifth grade Eridan, who was a little unsure of his sexuality, had asked Sollux, who was a little unsure of his, to a dance and he had said yes. It had the real making of young love, you were sure. But then Eridan never showed and didn’t speak to him for over a year.

You know it’s hard to accept you’re bi when you’re twelve so you are more than willing to forgive Eridan’s slight, but Sollux is still mad about putting his neck out there and getting burned for it.

“Listen, I know you’re going to go anyways so you might as well enjoy yourself,” you say. Sollux grumbles. From across the hall you see Feferi toss her hair over her shoulder. She has so much of it, there’s constantly strands all over her desk, and on her stuff. You know it won’t be long until she spots the two of you. Sollux is tall, and he stands out, especially when he’s leaning down to argue with you.

You just need him to be ready for when she makes her way over. Feferi is so friendly, she’s going to come say hi, you know it. She’s a junior like Terezi, Vriska and Gamzee, but she’s never made you feel like there was any difference between you. She was adopted by the far more popular group in school, but she always preferred the company of you and your other friends. Even Eridan hadn’t managed to scare her off. 

“AC, there is no reason for me to ask her. We both know she’s going anyways, so this is pointless,” he says. This is ridiculous.

“Sollux!” You cry, just barely resisting the urge to stamp your foot. He’s being impossible. As if on cue, Feferi turns around.

“Nepeta! Sollux!” She shouts. She waves goodbye to the other members of the cheer squad and makes her way over. Sollux, if it was possible, looks even more green and busies himself into looking for something in his locker. 

“Hi Fef!” You say when she arrives. 

“Hey FF.” Sollux waves weakly and Feferi positively beams at him. You want to die out of frustration.

“What are you guys arguing about?” She asks, looking between them.

“Absolutely nothing,” Sollux answers to quickly, “in fact we weren’t even talking. She was just leaving, weren’t you AC?” He shoots you a look, and you glare back. 

“Actually-” you start to say but Sollux abruptly slams his locker shut. 

“Actually I was leaving,” he decides.

“Don’t you need your backpack?” Feferi asks him. He shakes his head. 

“Nope not all, see you later!” and he’s gone. Feferi looks startled. 

“Was it something I said?” She asks. You shake your head, beyond frustrated.

“No, boys are just stupid,” you mumble. 

With that plan failed you say goodbye to Feferi and head down the hall. You catch sight of Dave, Rose, John and Kanaya and head towards them instead.

They’re all sophomores too except for Kanaya, who’s a junior. Dave and Rose are actually twins, and it’s easy to tell. Where Dave is wishy washy with his sexuality, Rose has been out as a lesbian since the fourth grade. Rose is equal parts elegant and a mess. Her black lipstick is never out of place and she has perfect posture and speech, but she spends all of her time trash talking men twice her age on xbox. She’s a notorious troll, and loves nothing more than crushing men at their own game.

“Hello Nepeta,” Rose greets you. You nod at her. Her girlfriend of four years, Kanaya, smiles. You like Kanaya, even though she’s a little closer to Karkat then she is to you. Once upon a time you thought maybe the two of them could have become something but nope. Kanaya has been a lesbian almost as long as Rose.

“Hey guys, have you seen Karkat around?” You ask them. They all share some looks and it sets you a bit on edge. 

“He’s arguing with Eridan,” Kanaya answers finally. You sigh and roll your eyes. You’re not going to go deal with that just yet then. 

“Were you guys invited to his party?” 

“Of course, I’m sure it’s going to be a real trip,” Dave grins, digging his invitation out of his backpack. He passes it over to you. You hadn’t really opened your after Equius had told you what it was so now you read through it properly. 

It appears to be handwritten by Eridan himself. It has a long intro about how you should feel honored by the chance to come celebrate with him and see his family’s huge house. The date and time are stated to be next saturday, exactly a week before the valentine’s day dance. It’s about everything you expected it to be. 

“I still can’t figure out why he invited me,” John remarks, holding up his own invite. 

“Eridan has always been thorough, it would have been rude to invite Dave, Rose and Jade and not you,” Kanaya points out. John has been friends with the other three since before you met them. They’re an inseparable pack, everyone knew that. 

“Since when is Eridan polite?” You snort. Kanaya gives you withering look but you high five Dave anyways. You promise you don’t actually hate Eridan, he’s just such a dick sometimes it’s hard not to.

“We are obviously important to him, so he invited all of us to his party. And we’re all going.” She gives the group a look.

“Well I’ve got nothing better to do I guess,” Dave shrugs. You grin. At least this has gone according to plan.

“So Dave, who are you going to the party with?”

\-----------------------------------

Terezi

Friday, February 2nd, 3:00 PM

“If you think for even a fucking second that that was good ending to the series you’re even more of complete moron then I thought! You’ve devolved back into the fucking fish you’re descendant from! Goldfish have a higher IQ than you do and they forget things after three seconds!” 

“Kar, you knoww that’s not true about the goldfish.” 

“I don’t give a flying fuck about goldfish!”

“You’re the one who brought them up!” 

You were just making your through the hall, you didn’t mean to stumble into the middle of an argument. Now that you’re here though. 

“Karkles, goldfish can at least remember things for up to three months,” you say. You walk towards them confidently, hoping that you’ve rendered your ex speechless. He’s always funnier when he’s spluttering. 

“Pyrope, as previously stated, I don’t give two shits about goldfish! I was making a fucking point!” Karkat shouts. You think you can almost see him waving his arms around. 

“The point that dear Eri, here, has a proficient memory span?” You ask casually.

“Ha!”

“No!” 

“So it’s that goldfish are getting a bad rep?” You ask again. You’re starting to smile as Karkat seethes.

“No! Stop that, fuck, see this why -” He cuts himself off and makes a strangled noise. Eridan is still laughing at your side.

“You should see how red his face is,” he wheezes. 

“Fuck off, Ampora,” Karkat gripes.

“Awe, Kar, don’t be that way,” Eridan tries to placate him. It’s obviously not working because he’s still gasping for air between his laughter. 

“Whatever, you’re both assholes,” Karkat bites out. Eridan’s giggles ease off and he taps your shoulder.

“Oh he’s leaving, thanks for the asist, Rez,” he says, before calling after Karkat. 

“No problem Prince Dan!” You shout after him. Ruffling Karkat’s feathers has always been one of your more favorite activities. 

You start to head towards the student parking lot again. You know Sollux won’t leave the front of the school until you’ve caught all the way up with him, but you like to be punctual. Maybe you’ll even run into Nepeta on the way there. Where there’s a Karkat, a Nepeta is never far behind. 

“There’s my favorite blind girl!” Dave says, voice appearing next to you. Dave almost never remembers to tap you to warn you of his presence. He likes the shock factor of it he says. You tell him you like how he yelps when you ‘accidentally’ whack him with your cane.

“I’m the only blind girl you know, Strider,” you smirk. 

“And that’s why you’re my favorite!” 

“What can I do for you? It’s not everyday the most popular boy in school talks to little old me.”

“Nepeta thinks we should go to douchfins party together, and who am I to deny such a hilarious request,” he explains. He sounds smugs, and you’re positive he’s waggling his eyebrows at you.

“Dave,” you warn him. He knows how to behave himself. 

“Fine, I’ll play nice. She means well, but you know how persistent she can be,” he pokes your shoulder. 

“I prefer to think of it as dedication,” you say diplomatically.

“You sound like Kanaya,” Dave complains. This time you do whack him. 

“We should all strive to be as caring as our resident mom friend,” you inform him as he yelps. 

“But then who would bring all of the fun?” He asks.

“I’ll allow it, but you’re on thin ice,” you concede. 

“So the party, we should do it,” he says. You frown, crinkling your nose. You know people think Dave’s attractive, people talk about how good looking all the Stridalondes are, but you can’t even begin to fake that kind of attraction for him. He speaks in too many layers. It’s stimulating because you do that too, but it’s always exhausting. You’re looking for something a bit more comfortable. 

“I can almost hear the cogs in your brain turning, the steam is literally coming out of your ears. I don’t want to date you Terezi. No offense, but you’re not my type.” Dave teases you. 

“Oh, can’t handle a girl that’s smarter than you?” You ask him. 

“God no, it would be like dating Rose. Gross and vaguely freudian.” He gags theatrically and you laugh. 

“I’ll take that as a compliment. Why the party then, what’s your angle?” 

“Listen, I’ve got someone on my radar but the jury's still out and I know Vantas is a pining mess for you. I figure I could get a could feel for the lay of the land with a little jealousy. That ridiculous dance is coming up and I want to know what my plans are going to before that. Plus I think it will get Karkat to take the stick out of his ass. It’s just a bonus that Nepeta thinks she’s successfully set us up. I know she gets a little thrill out of it. Which I mean more power to her I just can’t-”

“David,” you snap. He stops rambling. You think he’s wrong about Karkat, he’s just terrible at socialization and it’s not like there’s a guide to how to be friends with your ex anyways. But he’s right, matchmaking makes Nepeta happy, and you’re not opposed to helping Dave out with his own romantic quests. 

“So what do you think, would you be my date to the most pretentious event of the decade?” He asks you. 

“Jeez Strider, I thought you’d never ask!” You tell him, voice dramatic. You smile when you hear a small squeal of delight. Mission one accomplished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a note: lets assume tha Nepeta doesn't sneak over to eavesdrop until the very end alright? Gosh she's such a rascal.


	4. Chapter 4

Nepeta

Monday, February 5th, 7:00 AM

“So I hear you’re comin to my party on Saturday,” Eridan says. You jump, more than a little shocked to find him here.

“Jesus, warn a girl would you?”

“I always warn a girl,” he says suggestively. 

“Maybe that's why they avoid you,” Equius whispers. You tap his arm in warning but you don’t think Eridan heard him. It’s too early in the morning to deal with Eridan’s particular brand of drama. You get enough of him on Monday nights. 

“So what can we do for you, Eridan?” You ask. 

“Some little birds tell me that you’re in the business of settin people up,” he explains. Equius sighs. You try to remain aloof. You do like to play matchmaker but Eridan is going to have to be much nicer to get your help. 

“I’m just interested in my friend’s happiness,” you tell him. And it’s true, you only really like to meddle with people you care about. Still, you’d love the challenge and you don’t actually hate Eridan.

“And after all these years aren’t we friends, Nep?” He asks. He’s looking down at you, his eyes big and round. He’s not as tall as Sollux, but you think he’ll get there. Honestly, if he wasn’t such a prick, it wouldn’t even be that hard to find someone to date him. He’s one of the best people on the swim team, so you’re sure he’s got a great body under his ridiculous sweater. 

Eridan is in your grade but the two of you have been at odds for most of your friendship. You both like role playing , but he’s too much of a flake for your taste in friends. He also wastes no time in bragging about how rich his family is and everyone finds it annoying. It makes you feel inadequate, with you’re patchwork family and modest lifestyle. 

Still, Eridan is loyal. He hadn’t given up DND to save his reputation. Not even after it had churned it’s way through the rumor mill, and people made fun of him for it. 

“I guess we are Ampora.” Beside you Equius sighs. 

“Don’t encourage this ridiculous behavior,” he tells Eridan. You elbow him sharply, but it’s only mildly effective. He has a lot more muscle than you do. 

“Ignore him,” you say. Eridan doesn’t even glance in Equius’s direction. 

“So the valentine’s day dance is coming up...” he let’s the sentence hang. You notice how his v barely wobbles. You’re a bit surprised. That’ll piss Sollux off for sure. Maybe you’ll mention it if he hasn’t gotten around to talking to Feferi yet. 

“So you must know I’m terribly busy,” you inform him. Really between Sollux and Terezi and Karkat, not to mention trying to guide Equius around Aradia, you’ve got your hands full. 

Equius groans, much more noticeably this time. Both of you continue to ignore him. 

“But not so busy that you could help me get a date? It is my birthday after all!” He smiles and you’re comforted by the reminder that Eridan has braces too. Money can’t buy good genetics just yet. You shut your locker, as if that settles the matter. 

“I’ll see what I can do,” you say off handedly, “no promises though. Like I said, I’m busy.” Equius is torn between giving you disapproving looks and Eridan disappointed ones. But Eridan looks thrilled, he practically beams. 

“You’re real lifesavver, Nep,” he crows. That time his v wobbles but Eridan is gone before you can comment on it. 

\----------------------------------

Terezi

Monday, February 5th, 12:00 PM

“Terezi you traitor!” Meenah shouts. 

“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about,” you say evasively. You do though, this about Eridan’s party, and your fake date with Dave. 

“My vicious sister, what are you harping on about?” Gamzee asks. Tavros sighs heavily and Vriska tenses beside you. 

“This little twerp has a date with a Stridalonde!” Meenah accuses. You stick your tongue out at her. Meenah has weird ideas about things, and for some reason she hates the Stridalonde family.

“Terezi!” Vriska growls, and you can feel her glaring daggers at you. 

“This is immature guys,” you say. 

“Yeah, Roxy is super chill,” Tavros defends. 

“Actually, I’m going with Dave,” you correct him. 

“Really?” he asks. Gamzee makes a noise of disgust. He’s still upset about the Juggalo incident last year. You shrug.

“We’re friends.”

“But a date?” Vriska hisses. 

“Vriska,” you say. You know why she’s being frosty but she has to know by now you don’t like her like that. She just isn’t very good at sharing. 

“Exactly!” Meenah sounds vindicated. 

“Please, Nepeta thinks it’s a good match,” you explain. Also it’s not really a date. You’re friends are so dramatic. 

“Oh well if Nepeta says it must be right,” Vriska snarks, voice like acid. You sigh. Like you said, Vriska is bad at sharing. 

“Hey,” Tavros scolds her. He’s friends with Nepeta too. 

“It’s not that big of a deal. Eridan’s birthday party is hardly a hot date,” you say, voice final. Strider so owes you for this.


	5. Chapter 5

Nepeta

Monday, February 5th, 3:00 PM

Sollux’s face is bright red when you spot them at the end of the hall. Feferi’s blush is pretty, just a dainty bit of color on her cheeks, but his is a blotchy mess all over his face. You’re sure he’s red down to his toes. 

You obviously can’t hear them but it looks promising. It’s no secret, you’ve wanted this to happen for so long you can’t believe he was actually doing it. You’re so engrossed that you don’t register another person heading your way until Terezi whacks you with her cane. 

“Sorry,” Terezi starts, voice dripping with condescension, “I should watch where I’m going.” 

“Terezi!” You squeak. You flush, immediately feeling foolish. You’re usually so good at keeping an eye out for her. 

“Kitten?” Terezi asks, cocking her head towards you. You reach over and tap her shoulder twice. 

“It’s me,” you confirm, “I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you coming I was- Wait!” You whip around, trying to catch sight of Sollux and Feferi again. 

“Wait for what?” You shush her, eyes scanning the hall. There they are, still talking, but now Feferi is smiling. Sollux looks relieved, like he’s gotten something big on off of his chest. And now you’re smiling. 

“He finally did it!” You shout, turning to Terezi and hugging her fiercely. She grins back, cheeks pink.

“Who did what?” She asks, but you’re off. 

“I’ll talk to you later, I have to go!” You swiftly kiss her cheek, caught up in your own elation. Karkat is going to die when you tell him that the plan worked. That was the second one this week!

\-----------------------------------

Terezi

Monday, February 5th 3:05 PM

“Hey are you okay?” Sollux asks, sounding a little weirded out. You nod, face still feeling hot. 

It’s not like Nepeta had never hugged you before. On the contrary, she was probably the most touchy-feely person you knew. But the way she had squealed, and grabbed you. She sounded so happy, thrilled even. And she held you tight. It made you think about she held your hand, firm and steady. And she had smelled good, a fruity concoction that you thought most girls your age had long since left behind. 

And then she kissed you. Your heart thumps again, and feel a little bit dizzy. She didn’t mean anything by it, but still. Your heart had stuttered, and sent your brain into a tailspin. How had you never noticed it before? 

Of course you were so defensive of her, of sweet well meaning Nepeta. Sure you know she could take down people twice here size, how else has she managed to keep Equius in check, but still you felt protective. It all makes sense. You reach over and grab for Sollux’s hand. 

“Sollux, there’s a problem.”

“Yeah there is, you haven’t said a single word this whole time,” he pauses, “Wait, did you just call me by my name?” 

“I think I like Nepeta,” you gasp. Shit.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which I refuse to mess with the chat skin and you accept the the pesterlogs just as they are

Nepeta

Wednesday, February 7th 4:00 PM

“Equius, for the last time, you have got to stop insulting our campaign,” you say, more than a little miffed. Equius has always disapproved activities that waste time according to him, but he could do to be a little more nice about it. It’s not Dungeons and Dragons fault you’re failing geometry, it’s Ms. Black’s.

Over the phone Equius laments about Aradia’s steadfast uninterest in him. You roll your eyes and tell him to stuff it. Aradia is her own guiding ship and while you would love for your best friend to get the girl, he’s going to have to do it on his own if he wants to be worthy of her even giving him the time of day.

It’s not that you don’t like spending time talking with your best friend, you just wish he would learn to use text message instead. But no, Equius, of course, thinks texting is a lesser form of contact.

You fiddle on your laptop while he prattles on, only half paying attention. Your chart is filling up nicely. Now that Sollux and Feferi are in the bag and Terezi is going on that date with Dave, you only have two people left. And Eridan and Karkat are hard to pick for. As if she’s been summoned, Terezi’s username pops up as online. You smile and message her.

_AC: Terezi! Rumor has it that you and Dave are going to the party together? :3c_

_GC: You’ve heard right Kitten. What can I say, I like a man who has absolutely no spine >:] _

You laugh, Dave is a bit of a secret wimp.

_AC: You should be nicer to your prince charming. He’s only the most eligible bachelor in school~_

_GC: Haha I’m the most eligible bachelor in school, and he knows it._

You giggle again. She sounds happy, and that’s exactly what you wanted.

\-----------------------------------

Terezi

Wednesday, February 7th 5:00 PM

_TA: So, how’s the crush?_

You groan, face buried into your pillow, as your tablet reads you the message. It pings again.

_TA: Have you died? Are you allergic to cats, and so distressed about that you’ve killed yourself?_

_TA: Or are you lamenting over having to dump Dave? I’m sure he’ll understand. I don’t think he’s straight anyways?_

_TA: Or have you realized that you don’t like Nepeta and that his is all an elaborate ploy to get Karkat back. It shouldn’t be, you deserve better than that asshole._

You groan again before finally answering him.

_GC: Isn’t Karkat your best friend or something?_

_GC: Or have I been given false information?_

_TA: That fucker? Yeah he is but it doesn’t make him any less of an immature jerk_

_GC: Harsh :/_

_TA: I’m just telling it like it is TZ. Just because you can’t handle the truth…_

_GC: None of those things are what’s wrong. The date with Dave isn’t a real thing anyways_

_TA: Isn’t it?_

_GC: Nope just one big fakey fake date. He’s trying to make someone jealous?_

_GC: I just wanted to help Nepeta out_

_TA: You’re such a fucking sap._

_TA: Who is Dave trying to make jealous?_

_TA: Wait, I don’t give a fuck_

_TA: You’re so screwed_

_GC: Your vote of confidence is very reassuring_

_TA: I aim to please_

“Ughhhhhh.”  You don’t know what you’re going to do.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Four days later is the next day right????? You'll see the rest soon promise! :)

Nepeta

Saturday, February 10th 8:00 PM

“Well if it isn’t my favorite group of losers!” Eridan crows when he opens the door. 

“Eridan, the only loser here is you,” Equius deadpans. You shush him. It’s Eridan’s birthday, you’ll let him be a little insulting. 

“Hey Eridan, is everyone here?” You ask him. He grins. 

“The rest of our nerd crew is by the pool I think? I know that’s where Feferi is.” He jerks his thumb in the direction of the pool. You shrug, you’re not super big on swimming but if that’s what everyone else was doing. 

“I’m gonna help out Eridan,” Karkat tells you, “I’ll catch up later.”

You and Equius make your way there while they head towards the Amporas kitchen. 

Pretty much everyone is already there. Kanaya and and Rose are lounging in some chairs and talking to Tavros who only looks a little apprehensive about being so close to a body of water. Terezi is wading through the water, everyone else deathly quiet from various parts of the pool.

“Christopher!” She shouts.

“Columbus!” Everyone yells back. They scatter farther when she moves towards where Aradia is frozen.

“You know, I don’t think it’s morally right to make the blind girl be Marco each time?” Rose calls over to the group. Terezi turns to her. 

“Lalonde, I am the only one who can’t possibly cheat at this game. Are you telling me you trust these lying degenerates to not cheat? Dave refused to even take his sunglasses off! How can we trust a man who won’t let us see his eyes?” She puts her hands on her hips, trying to look menacing. She looks ridiculous. Her turquoise hair is pulled into small pony tail. She also didn’t take off her glasses, and water drips off of them. You laugh loudly and Equius grunts. 

“Kitten!” 

“Puppy?” John respondes. He shrieks when Terezi lunges at him, scrambling through the water, but it’s too late. She grabs him and tugs him under.

“You’ve been caught Egbert!” She mocks when they resurface. John grumbles and climbs out of the pool to go sulk with Rose and Kanaya. 

“Who’s next? Kitten get in the pool!” Terezi smiles and you smile back. You know she can’t see it but apparently you can hear people are smiling when they talk. You go back forth on that but you like the idea that maybe Terezi knows she makes you smile.

“Next round!” You say. You and Equius go and settle next to the others on the chairs. Equius starts talking to Tavros about the new chair he had gotten recently. Rose and Kanaya are chatting while John pouts.

“I’m always the first to get caught,” he complains. You’re a little sympathetic, you were the youngest until Arowin was born. 

“Learn to be quieter,” you tell him simply. He scowls at you.

“I’m always quiet!” He insists. You roll your eyes.

“You’re not fooling anyone,” you say. He huffs. From the pool you hear Aradia scream as Terezi dunks her too. Feferi is huddled behind Sollux who has a grin plastered on his face. You smile. You knew they would be much happier as soon as they got their stuff together. 

Terezi gets Dave next, and he laughs loudly as his sunglasses tumble off. She grins widely at him, cackling as well. You’re practically glowing. 

You can almost hear John’s teeth grinding, though. You’re not exactly sure what his problem is, but you think he should be less of a sore loser. 

Eridan takes this time to wander in, Karkat trailing after him. They’re both bright red and refuse to look at each other. Before you can think too much on it though, Vriska walks in as well. 

“Guess who brought booze?” She shouts loudly. Eridan’s older brother Cronus appears behind her, two bottles in hand. 

“Vriska,” Kanaya starts, “I’m not sure this is a good idea…” but beside her, Rose looks interested and from the water Terezi cackles.

“Oh can it, fussy fangs,” Vriska says.

You lock eyes with Equius. This could be bad. 

\---------------------------------

Terezi

Saturday, February 10th, 10:00 PM 

Rose giggles, loudly. You reek like chlorine and can only barely smell the alcohol that you’re holding. 

“That isn’t a logical course of action at all!” She cries. Her s’s slur together, so she kind of sounds like Sollux. 

“I didn’t know what else to do!” Dave defends himself. He has one arm thrown around your shoulder. You snort at him, and take a sip. You kick your feet in the water, liking how it feels against your skin. The pool room, like most pool rooms is way too hot, and the drinks just make it worse. 

“You should just tell him,” Kanaya says gently. You know she’s not drinking so maybe that’s why she’s trying to be the voice of reason. But you’ve been to more than one Stridalonde party, and you know that the older twins are incapable of reason when they get sloshed. 

“Tell him!” Dave shrieks, voice cracking, “have you ever met John?” 

“Several times actually,” Kanaya says bluntly. 

“I think he’s straight,” Dave whines. 

“Dave, I’m insulted you think we’d be friends with straight people,” Rose jokes. You’re positive Kanaya is giving her a look. You’ve heard a lot about Kanaya’s scathing looks, and that your whole group gets a lot of them. 

Dave complains some more. You’re trying to identify where everyone is at. You can hear Gamzee laughing loudly with Tavros and Aradia. Cronus had convinced Meenah to show up when he told her there was alcohol and the two of them are shit talking to each other. Vriska is obviously flirting with John, which is sending Dave into a fit. You’re just glad that maybe Vriska has decided to not be as obsessed with you for right now. Your friendship has been a little strained since Vriska had said she wanted to be more than friends and you had said no. 

Who you’re really listening for is Nepeta. She’s chatty but she’s not as noisy as everyone else. You feel the weight of Dave’s arm on your shoulders heavily. You and Dave have always been super casual friends but you can’t help and feel like Nepeta sees it differently. 

“Hey, point me in the direction of Karkat,” you ask Dave, interrupting his self deprecating monologue. 

“It’s your funeral, shouty mc shouterson is right over there.” He stood up with you and turned you a bit to the left. You march forward, a bit unsteadily, with your drink in hand. Karkat is chattering away at someone. His voice is stilted though, he keeps stopping and starting, like he’s unsteady. 

“No that’s not, fuck I mean it is, but no just, you’re and I’m,god fucking dammit.” 

“Tell us how you really feel Karkles,” you tell him, walking straight into him. He pushes you off, sputtering. Good, now you know how you’re positioned around him. 

“What do you fucking want Pyrope?” He asks.

“Hey Rez,” Eridan pipes up, sounding a little subdued. 

“My Prince! Nice party, not as many people here as I thought there would be?” You let the question hang.

“Galehk came,” he says simply. You whistle. 

“Impressive,” you say, just a bit mockingly. Galehk always shows up, he’s a damn social wasp. He loves pissing people off. 

“Don’t be a bitch,” Karkat says harshly. You frown at him. Drinking has a tendency to make Karkat a bit mean. 

“I am being nice,” you insist. 

“Kar, please, she doesn’t knoww,” Eridan cuts in. You’d ask what you don’t know but things a feeling a little slidey. Eridan’s w’s are wobbling. He’s a crying drunk and you wonder how long it will be before he’s starts the waterworks. 

“Listen, it’s our liege’s birthday, and I have a right to wonder who I have to harrass for blowing him off,” you inform them.

“Thanks Rez!” Eridan says, and he taps your shoulder. You appreciate the gesture. 

“Don’t mention it, but that’s not why I’ve sought you two out!”

“Oh, so you’ve finally come to put my miserable existence to an end? It’s about damn time Pyrope, I’ve been waiting for the past six fucking months.” Karkat bumps your shoulder, something he does to let you know he was rolling his eyes at you. 

“Get over yourself crabcake, I’m not here for you. I’m here to ask you about your sister!” 

“Arowin?”

“She’s talkin’ about Nep you ass,” Eridan corrects.

“Bingo!” You finger gun in what you hope is Eridan’s direction. He’s a smart cookie. Karkat snorts.

“Blugh, why the fuck do you want to talk to me about Nepeta? You probably know more about her then I do anyways.” 

“Kar,” Eridan sighs, sounding exasperated. You don’t want to deal with the weird eye conversation you’re sure they’re having. You have questions and you want answers. You take another swing of your drink. The smell of chlorine is really getting to you at this point. Maybe you should take a step outside when you’re done here. 

“I just have one question,” you assure him, “I just want to know if she likes girls, thats all.” Karkat chokes on his drink and Eridan laughs.

“Fuck, like romantically?” Karkat coughs out.

“No, like platonically,” you snark.

“I don’t fucking know. Why the hell do you want to know? There’s already one matchmaking freak here, we don’t need two! Nepeta fits the bill perfectly just fine on her own!” Karkat coughs some more, voice a little hoarse. 

“Kar, I don’t think that’s wwhy she wants to knoww,” Eridan says, sounding amused.

“Why else would she need to fucking know? It’s not like- Oh my fucking god, Pyrope what the fuck?” Karkat punches your shoulder. You start to cackle. This is ridiculous. Why did you think this would be a good idea?


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M GETTING THERE PROMISE  
> In other news I read all of ok by Scedasticity yesterday and suffice to say, I'm not ok!!!!!  
> Also hiveswap keeps denying me, personally, any new violet bloods  
> Soon I'll have more, already like halfway through the next chap

\-----------------------------

Nepeta

Sunday, February 11th, 10:00 AM

“Mmm, you guys all look like shit,” Cronus comments. You blink blearily over at him. 

Pretty much everyone is scattered around the Ampora’s living room. Around midnight, Eridan had declared they all had to clear out of the pool, because it was his birthday and it was movie time. You had passed out about halfway through The Princess Bride. It’s one of Karkat’s favorites so you had seen it at least thirty times. But now the tv is just playing some informercial, and all of your friends are just passed out on the floor. 

Meenah appears next to Cronus, an eggo waffle in hand. 

“Come on guys, it’s time to rise and shine!” She commands. You groan, along with several other people. You didn’t really drink very much the night before but you’re loathe to get up before noon on a weekend. 

Equius, your trusty pillow, sighs. You know he’s been up since at least eight, which is sleeping in for him. But he tried not to wiggle because you’re curled up in his lap. On your other side is Karkat. He has one arm thrown over you, and his head is tucked under your arm. He’s grumbling in his sleep, not the least bit bothered by Meenah and Cronus. 

“Cro, wwhy?” Eridan whines. You look over to where he’s collapsed on a different sofa, Terezi hugging him close. You file away that information for later. On another glance around the room you spy Dave and John holding hands, even though Dave is spooning Jade. Kanaya is awake and gently prodding a viciously hungover Rose into sitting up. Feferi and Sollux are snoozing, heads together and Aradia is stretching from where she was by herself in an armchair. 

“Because Dad is gonna get home around noon, and I can’t havve half the freshman class still drunk in the living room,” he explains. Cronus doesn’t even have the excuse of being tired, you know he’s never bothered to even try to work out his speech impediment. 

“Ughhh,” Eridan moans. He wiggles out of Terezi’s death grip. You’ve had a couple sleepovers with her before, and you know she’s a fierce cuddler. 

Eridan disappears into the kitchen, and comes back with his own waffle. You think that maybe if you get up and go in there you could get your own breakfast food. 

“Karkat,” you hiss, nudging him. He mumbles some more.

“Fuck off, Nep.” 

“Karkat,” you try again, shaking him some more. Equius sighs. 

“You two are both such children,” he complains.

“Shut it, Equius, I think there are waffles in the kitchen and I want some.” You glance around again, hoping that you weren’t that loud. No one seems to have noticed, except Karkat, who immediately sits up.

“Waffles?” He asks groggily. You nod. He grabs your hand and drags you into the kitchen, Equius trailing behind you. Eridan watches you go, and you wave with your free hand. You wonder what his sudden interest is about. 

The kitchen is spotless, and huge. You’ve been to Eridan’s house a couple times because of DnD but you’ve never set foot into his kitchen. It makes you hesitant to touch anything. Karkat though, seems to have no qualms about digging through the large freezer. 

Karkat pulls out the box of waffles and pops a couple into a spotless toaster he finds on the counter. Pretty soon, Dave and Rose walk into the kitchen as well, Kanaya herding them disapprovingly. 

“Why is the sun the worst thing to ever exist. And why is Eridan’s brother an even bigger douche than he is?” Dave whines. From the living room, Cronus shouts a protest but is silenced by some other hungover teenager. Rose smirks from under her hands, which are covering her face. 

“Have you guys come to get waffles too?” You ask. 

“No, we’ve heard from a reliable source that our dear friend Eridan is in possession of poptarts,” Rose explains. 

“We have also come to acquire some water,” Kanaya informs you. 

“We don’t need water, we need sugar,” Dave insisted. 

“You don’t need anything asshole,” Karkat tells him. But he shoves a box of poptarts into his hands and Strider beams. Your eyes narrow. Why is your brother so familiar with Eridan’s kitchen anyways?

“Karkt you are my savior, my knight in shining armor, I will give my life to you if you ask me of it.” 

“Shut it Dave,” the room chorused. Karkat’s cheeks were pink, and you knew it. You knew that he was bisexual disaster and had never even told you! The betrayal!

“Oi, if you guys are done raiding my kitchen, I’d appreciate it if you helped me wake the rest of these loser up,” Eridan griped, appearing in the doorway. 

\--------------------------------------

Terezi 

Sunday, February 11th, 10:30 AM

“Hey, Terezi, it’s time to get up,” someone tells you. They sound familiar, their voice soft, and high pitched. 

“There is no way it’s time to get up already, angel,” you mumble. Your head pounds and you feel disoriented. You could have sworn Eridan was with you last night.

There’s a huff, and the person shakes you. 

“Terezi please.” They, she, sounds annoyed. 

“Where’s the dashing fish prince I fell asleep with?” You ask. You sit up, and feel dizzy immediately. Head rush.

“Rez!” Another voice protests on your other side. It makes your head ring but you latch on to it. It cracks a little and, ah, that’s definitely Eridan. 

“Not that your gallivanting isn’t exciting, but didn’t you come with the Stridalondes yesterday?” The first voice asks again. They sound intrigued. You try and place it. They're voice is squeaky and most certainly female. Then they tap your shoulder twice and only one of your friends ever does that consistently.

“Kitten!” You yell and then instantly regret it. Your head throbs and you groan. Nepeta shoves a water bottle into your hands.

“Anyways, Kanaya says that Bro will be here soon so you should probably get up.” She taps your shoulder again, and then is presumably gone. Eridan takes her place soon though. His shoulders brush yours. Eridan has been growing like a weed for the last couple of years, but right now you guys are the same height. 

“So, Nep…” he trails off. You punch him with startling accuracy and he yelps.

"Hey, take it easy, Rez! I'm just sayin, I think I can help you out."

"I'm listening, Ampora."


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking two more guys! :) Maybe an epilogue???? Depends on if you want one!  
> Next chapter if not later today, later this week!

Nepeta

Monday, February 12th, 11:30 AM

“Got anythin’ in purple?” Eridan asks, leaning on the table. It wobbles a bit, unstable as most folding tables, but holds under his weight. You give him a half hearted glare. You were pretty excited to volunteer to sell the Valentine’s Day carnations in the cafeteria this year, but all it’s done is given you time to think about how disastrously all of your plans are going. Not to mention you haven’t even figured out what you were doing with Karkat yet. And it’s all Eridan fault. 

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t my valentine’s day traitor,” you say. He raises his eyebrows.

“I have no idea what you’re goin’ on about,” he replies.

“Your party,” you tell him, but he just gives you blank stare. You huff. 

“You know, your party, the place where you completely fucked up everything between Dave and Terezi!” You accuse. He continues to give you blank look before a smirk stretches out over his face. Then, as if to add to your embarrassment, he starts to laugh. It’s loud and mocking and you’re in no mood for his douchebag shenanigans

“That’s a good one, Nep,” he wheezes. 

“I’m not kidding! Everything was fine until the next thing I know you’ve got you’re arms all over her, and Karkat is pouting. I don’t know what you’re issue with each other is but it’s ridiculous! You didn’t need to drag poor Terezi into your pissing match!” You’re fuming. Eridan is still laughing, tears leaking from his eyes. Some other students give you weird looks as they pass but you ignore them. 

“You have no idea how wrong you are, Nep, no idea!” He heaves, trying to catch his breath.

“Just fuck off, Ampora!” He shakes his head, still chuckling. 

“I can’t, I came here for a flower and a flower is what I’m going to get. Now, do you have anything in purple?” He’s breathless from laughing. You scowl. There are in fact purple flowers, but you hand him the shittiest one for him to scrawl a message and name on. 

“One dollar, it goes towards the student funds,” you grumble. He slaps down a five. 

“Keep the change.” He drops the poor flower in one of the home room boxes unceremoniously when he’s done. You feel bad for poor Terezi, Eridan’s an insufferable asshole. 

“Screw off dick hole!” You shout after him after he saunters away. You wrinkle your nose, you sound like your brother. 

You’ve been in a foul mood all day. Dave was practically despondent, even if he wasn’t showing it. You could tell because you had to listen Karkat rant all morning and he didn’t even make a single crack about it. Speaking of Karkat, he’s been jumpier than normal since Saturday. Terezi has been avoiding you like the plague. Even when you tapped her shoulder twice, she made an excuse about a research paper. You should have known that Eridan couldn’t control his never ending need to be a douche, even if he was desperate for a date! He had ruined everything!

The bell rings, declaring and end to the lunch period. You hastily gather up your carnations. And boxes. Soon enough you have repacked you cart and are dutifully taking it back to the guidance office. The hallways are even harder to navigate with it in front of you. Most other students don’t even bother to try and not shake it as they jostle pass. You’re more concerned about it tipping than being late to your next class though.

“Hey there Kitten,” Terezi greets. She slides up next to the cart, and grips it’s side, effectively keeping it from veering off course.

“Terezi! Where have you been all morning?” She shrugs, and her answering smile seems less sharp than usual.

“I’ve been around, lots of stuff going on,” she waggles her eyebrows, “how are you my dear friend?”

“Eridan is driving me up a wall, and Karkat is Karkat, and Dave is sulking and to top it all off, there were flowers in my locker this morning. Green carnations! I don’t have time to deal with whatever joke this is about, Not this week, the dance is on Saturday, I’m busy!” You rant, pushing the cart into the office. It’s basically turning out to be the worst Monday of your life and it’s only half way over. 

“What’s wrong with flowers?” She asks, head cocked to the side. 

“I don’t get flowers, it’s just a cruel trick. It’s stupid, I just thought we had left all of that behind in middle school.” You shake your head even though she can’t see it. 

“Maybe they were good flowers?” she suggests. Her voice is soft, like she’s choosing her words carefully. But the talk of flowers reminds you.

“Are you going to the dance with Eridan?” You ask her. She looks startled before she starts to laugh. 

“What kind of girl do you take me for? Like I would ever go anywhere with that drama queen.” 

“Good,” you tell her. You don’t know why but you feel a bit better.

\-----------------------------

Terezi

Monday, February 12th, 1:00 PM

“She thinks the flowers are a joke,” you inform the two in front of you.

“Why?” Eridan asks, sounding confused. 

“What fucking flowers?” Karkat asks, sounding angry. 

“I told her to romance her, get her flowers and shit. Chicks like that right?” Eridan asks him. Karkat groans, loud and strangled. Then there’s a familiar thunk, his head must be on the table.

“Mr Vantas, if you can’t be bothered to participate, I will be forced to partner you with me,” Ms. Quincy scolds. You snicker as Karkat grumbles. It’s eighth period chemistry class, and it’s lab day. For some reason, no one will let you do anything. So, you basically piggyback onto whatever Eridan and Karkat do, and help write out chemical equations. As long as they don’t complain the teacher, Wanda Quincy, seems alright with arrangement. 

The three of you almost never get anything done.

“Sorry,” he bites out sarcastically, but she lets it go.

“Nice,” Eridan teases. He laughs which makes you think that Karkat must be glaring at him so you laugh too. Winding Karkat up is fun.

“Why did I ever think that you like girls, like ever. Please explain to me why this was a thing I thought you were into,” Karkat rants.

“Hey, I’m into girls,” Eridan defends himself. 

“Not as much as you’re into guys though,” you point out, “and girls like flowers Karkles.” 

“But not Nepeta.She spends all of her time in the woods, like what made either of you think she wanted flowers?” 

“So I should get her a stick is what you’re saying,” you dead pan. He makes furious noise of frustration.

“Remember when we had the conversation where I told you that you probably know her better than I do?” 

“Vaguely.” You then proceeded to get really drunk, so the night was kind of blurry. 

“Yes,” Eridan says excitedly. 

“So do something she would like. I dunno, write her a story or something,” Karkat suggests. 

“Isn’t Rose still big on writing fanfiction, you could ask her for help,” Eridan supplies. You crinkle your nose.

“I’ve never tried to woo someone before, this is tricky,” you admit. 

“It can’t be that hard, I did it once,” Karkat says.

“Twice,” Eridan corrects him. He grumbles but doesn’t retort. You crack a grin. 

“Speaking of your secret romance…” you start.

“There is no secret-” Karkat tries to cut in.

“Nepeta asked me if I was taking Eridan to the dance,” you finish. 

“What the fuck?” Karkat screams. You collapse into giggles.

“Mr. Vantas!” Eridan starts laughing too. Winding Karkat up may be fun, but it’s even better when he explodes.


	10. Chapter 10

Nepeta

Wednesday, February 14, 7:00 AM

“Oh,” you say in surprise when a couple couple of folded sheets of paper flutter from your locker. You pick them up, and a note is taped to one of them. 

“What are those?” Equius asks. Karkat, who’s on your other side sniffs.

“I can’t believe she actually went through with it,” he comments. 

“She?” you ask reading the note. It’s short and says that the papers are a story written just for you. It’s unsigned. A peak at the first page shows you it’s your favorite pairing. 

“Oh no, I’m not getting in the middle of this. Besides, isn’t it like the romantic dream to have a secret admirer.” He nudges you. 

“An admirer? What are those papers Nepeta?” Equius reaches for them but you duck out of the way.

“Calm down, it’s just a little fic,” you assure him, then you turn to your brother, “So the flowers then?” 

“Legit,” he confirms. You smile. 

“That’s what Terezi said.” 

“Well she’s usually right,” Karkat grumbles. You’re not going to look further into that. Karkat can deal with his own relationship problems with Terezi for right now, you’re still trying to figure out what’s going on with her and Eridan. 

“You got flowers and didn’t tell me?” Equius asks you, sounding hurt. You shrug.

“It thought they were a joke,” you tell him. 

“Even still, I would have defended your honor,” he says.

“And that’s why I didn’t tell you. Anyways, it turned out to be a good thing!” You smile, carefully rearranging your short story. He complains some more but you wave him off. 

You want to go tell Terezi about your gift. So you say goodbye to Karkat and Equius and dart down the hall. You’ve only got maybe five minutes until first bell rings but you’re determined and Terezi is easy to spot. 

You find her with Sollux and Eridan. The two boys are glaring at each other but not speaking as she chats to the two of them. You’re not sure how she can through all the tension, even if she can’t see them murder one another with their eyes. 

“Hey guys,” you say and dutifully tap Terezi on the shoulder. 

“Oh hey kitten, do you like my entourage? They make such a dramatic statement!” She grins. You see Sollux roll his eyes and Eridan sighs theatrically. They both mumble a hello back to you. 

“There is definitely something to be said for it,” you allow. 

“What have you got there, Nep?” Eridan asks. 

“I have a secret admirer!” You tell them, hopping a bit in excitement. 

“On Valentine’s day no less,” he says, and smiles knowingly. 

“Congrats AC,” Sollux tells you, “I wonder who it is…” You narrow your eyes at the two of them but Terezi elbows them both. 

“Shut it you guys, you’ll take all of the fun out of it for her!” She says. 

“How come everyone knows? I don’t even have the first clue!” You complain. It has to be someone from your friend group, but that’s still so many people. 

“They’re closer than you think,” Eridan says, voice teasing. You roll your eyes at him.

“Secrets, secrets, secrets, you guys are all keeping secrets from these days,” you accuse him. You jab at his side, and he yelps. Eridan is super ticklish. 

“Like what? I don’t have any secrets from you,” Sollux counters. 

“Maybe not you,” you admit and then you lean in to stage whisper, “but I think Terezi and Eridan have got something going on between them.” Sollux laughs and Eridan squawks.

“For the last time kitten, I’ve got nothing going on with fish for brains over here,” Terezi says mildly. She smirks when Eridan makes another indignant noise. 

“You wish, you blind freak!” He protests. Sollux is still laughing. 

“You wound me, my dear prince. I thought what we had was special,” Terezi says. 

“No one in their right mind wants to go out with the douche bag,” Sollux tells you between giggles. 

“You just wish you had a piece of this, Captor,” Eridan seethes. 

“In your dreams, Ampora,” Sollux responds. As lovely as this pissing match is, you’re tired of it already. You tap Terezi’s hand to signal a knowing look and she taps yours back twice. 

“Boys, enough with the aggressive flirting, we all know everyone here is currently taken with somebody else,” she interjects. They both quiet, looking reluctant. 

“Sorry, TZ,” Sollux says, and Eridan just looks guilty. You giggle, Terezi is one powerful girl. 

\---------------------------------------

Terezi

Wednesday, February 14th, 12:00 PM

“She liked it!” You crow, collapsing in the unoccupied seat between Aradia and Tavros’s wheelchair. Your aim is off and you crash a bit into Aradia’s side but she doesn’t seem to care, and just pushes you off. 

“Of course she did, you’re one talented mother fucker, sis,” Gamzee says. You give him a smile, and it’s all teeth. 

“Thanks Mr. Grape, I do try.” Aradia bumps your shoulder but you ignore her. Tavros stifles a small laugh. 

“That’s good, I think,” he says. 

“What’s the next step?” Aradia asks, sounding a bit detached. You’re sure she has her head buried into a book. She’s plotting out the next leg in your campaign, and it’s consuming a lot of her time. 

“I think I’m going to tell her at the dance?” You tell them. 

“Cute,” she says.

“Who suggested that? Was it Karkat?” Vriska asks, sounding disdainful. She shoves herself on the bench between you and Tavros, pushing you and Aradia down the bench. Aradia grumbles, but Vriska ignores her. 

“Maybe,” you tell her, “do you have different advice?” You like considering what Vriska has to say, she’s clever even when she’s cruel. 

“Well I’m not sure why we’re trying to ‘whoo’ Nepeta anyways. You could just show up and I’m sure she’ll be so happy to finally have anyone interested in her it’ll be in the bag,” she complains.

“Uh, Vriska,” Tavros says, but you wave him off. You have to let Vriska get through the cruel parts to get to the good stuff.

“But isn’t that just a giant cliche? Sounds like something out of those bad movies Karkat used to drag you to, doesn’t it? Who says she even likes that kind of stuff. I would think that person was a giant loser. And I can’t date a giant loser!” She sniffs. 

“Vriska, that’s… rude,” Tavros scolds. 

“Yeah but you don’t want to date her, I do,” you point out.

“I still don’t know why,” Vriska complains. You shrug. 

“She’s cute,” you tell her. 

“Adorableeeeeeee,” she drawls sarcastically. 

“Well what would you do?” You ask her. Vriska is friends with Nepeta too, even if she’s too busy having a jealous fit to admit it. 

“Well, I would,” Vriska starts. Tavros shifts in his wheelchair, and Aradia taps you in warning, but you like it. You like her idea a lot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The dance is next and it's going to be a longgggggg chapter! then a small epilogue! Done before easter is my current plan but really done before my local convention (April 7th) is more likely xD
> 
> HOME STRETCH GUYS :D


	11. Chapter 11

Nepeta

Saturday, February 17, 10:00 AM

“Hey, you’ve got a letter,” Karkat says from the doorway. You groan, burying yourself into the blankets even further. 

“It’s too early to be up,” you tell him. You hear him walk over to you. He sits down on the bed, forcing you over to make room. 

“Well it’s important, it’s from you know who,” he teases. You’re slightly more interested, but the bed is warm. You curl up tighter, and moan in response. 

“Come on Nepeta, if you don’t get up, I’m going to open it. It’s time sensitive information!” You make another noise in response. “That’s it I’m opening it. ‘Dear Nepeta, today is the day of the dance and I -” 

You sit up and snatch the paper from his hands. 

“You can’t open someone’s mail that’s a federal crime,” you say.

“Well maybe someone should listen when they tell them it’s time sensitive information,” he argues back. You glare at him and he glares back. 

“This you knowing and me not is so unfair,” you complain.

“Listen it’s not my fault you’re so fucking stupid you can’t see what’s happening blatantly in front of you,” he says. There’s no bite to his words, so you know he’s not trying to be mean. 

“It is more fun this way though,I wouldn’t be getting all these thoughtful gifts!” You wave the letter, as proof. The story you got earlier in the week is tucked into you bedside table and the carnation you got on Friday is sitting on top of it.

“And I might be able to finally get some peace,” Karkat continues, “but she dropped it off this morning and insisted you get it as soon as possible. So I waited an hour.” He shrugs.

“Karkat!” You immediately start to scan the letter. It’s a bit confusing before it dawns on you, it’s a clue. This is a scavenger hunt! 

“Oh my god, I knew you would love this stupid plan. You’re so predictable, it’s disgusting,” he gripes. 

“You have to help me,” you tell him, scrambling out of bed. 

“I don’t have to help you do shit,” he replies, sounding alarmed. You don’t wait for him to argue, instead you pull him off the bed and push him out the door. 

“Go get ready, I’ll meet you downstairs!” 

You rush through getting dressed, pulling a pair of old jeans and your green hoodie before hastily running a brush through your hair. There’s no point in doing anything to it, you’ll have to shower before the dance anyways if you’re going to be galavanting around outside. 

Luckily Karkat was already dressed, so he’s in the kitchen when you clamber down the stairs. Your mom, Silas, and Arowin are there, but Kankri must be in his room. You breeze past them, and grab a fist full of cereal out of the box. 

“Get a bowl Nepeta,” your mom scolds. 

“No time, Karkat and I are going out,” you tell her.

“Remember to wear your coats,” Silas says. Arowin shrieks at him as he tries to convince her to eat more of her breakfast. 

“We’re not fucking morons, Dad,” Karkat gripes. 

“Karkat Vantas!” Your mom says.

“Not in front of your sister!” Silas adds. 

“We’ll be back before the dance, bye!” You call, dragging him towards the back door. You have to get him out of their before he starts an argument about the pointlessness of censoring language.

Karkat huffs, stomping out into the yard. It snowed a little last night, making everything ice and white. 

“I brought you a banana,” he says, and shoves it into your hands. 

“Thanks!” You take it and consider the letter. 

It had described the trees behind your house. It’s a small group of trees, hardly enough to be considered a real forest, but still it’s your favorite place in the neighborhood. So you assume that the next clue would be back there. 

“It’s too cold for this,” Karkat grouches. You hum in response which only makes him scowl. You like the snow, and how crunchy it sounds. Sure it’s cold but it smells good and is fun to play in. 

You both trek into the treeline, keeping an eye out for another letter. You spend a lot of time here just walking round in the warmer months, looking for plants and wildlife. So there isn’t just one place that the letter could be.

“If she’s hidden it under a rock I’m going to kill her,” Karkat tells you, walking around another tree trunk and coming up empty. 

“Maybe we aren’t looking high enough?” You suggest, looking up at the tree branches. You like to climb them. You’re sure you’ve talked about it more than once. 

“Trust me when I tell you that there is no possible way for the next letter to be up there,” he says. You file away that bit of information. You had thought maybe you secret admirer had been Jade, but Jade was just as good at climbing trees as you are. She lived for playing in the woods when you guys were younger. So the fact that your secret admirer couldn’t or wouldn’t put a clue in the trees probably knocks her out of the running. That kind of sucks, because Jade is really cute and super nice. 

You get a little further into the woods before you spot something colorful. 

“Karkat!” You shout, darting towards the tree. A jogs to catch up, nowhere near as fast as you are. You rip the plastic folder from the tree, and take out the typed letter inside of it. 

“Well, where is this magical adventure taking us next?” Karkat asks. 

You read it over, and smile. 

“The library!” You declare. And Karkat groans. But you’re already tugging him back to the house. 

You can get Kankri to drive you there! 

\------------------

Terezi

Saturday, February 17, 5:30 PM

“You’re hair clashes so bad with that dress, it’s fantastic!” Vriska tells you. She’s digging around your room, and moving piles to suit her own whim. You’ll never be able to find anything once she’s gone again but it doesn’t matter. You’re so nervous. 

“I hope she found all the letters,” you say, ignoring the compliment. You like red but you hear that red and turquoise don’t go together very well. But why do you care, you can’t see it anyways. 

“Of course she found all the letters, a baby could find those letters, I made sure they were really bright,” she assures you. You hear her knock over another thing of clothes. She’s trying to find your shoes, but you’re sure she’s making a mess on purpose. She still isn’t entirely on board with the whole Nepta thing. You’re willing to ignore it because she had helped you put all of the letters around town today. 

The last letter, hidden in the basement of the Vantas-Leijon house, left specific instructions for her to meet you by the doors at eight. Sure the dance starts at seven, but you want some time for everyone to get there and let you breathe. 

“So, are you going to help me with my makeup, or am I just going to wing it?” You ask, changing the subject. 

“Only if you let my paint your nails,” Vriska says. 

“Fine, but only because you can’t paint your own,” you smirk. 

“I can too, I just choose not to,” she huffs. But you know the truth, Vriska just can’t be bothered. 

Vriska takes her time, snarking when you purposefully move around. You’re not a makeup person but Vriska likes to appear older whenever she can, so she got good at it at a young age. Sometimes you let her do yours for special occasions and she always makes a big deal about it. She hasn’t been big on doing her nails since she lost her arm but you remember being young and her wanting to always paint yours to match.

“Now please don’t touch anything for like five minutes, or I’ll have to do them all over again,” she instructs you. You wiggle your fingers experimentally.

“How am I supposed to do anything if I can’t touch it?” You ask her slyly. 

“You’re not supposed to do anything just sit there,” she says. You hear her get up and assume she’s started to get herself ready as well. 

You’re antsy though, and far too nervous to just sit still. You bounce on your bed, trying to keep breathing. 

This is it, it’s the big night!

\---------------------------------

Nepeta

Saturday, February 17, 6:50 PM

“Good evening Ms. Leijon,” you hear Equius say. You rush to the door to meet him. 

“It’s good to see you Equius, how’s your father?” Your mom asks. 

“He is excellent thanks you,” Equius replies. 

“Blah blah blah, everyone is super great and no one has died, business is good, blah, ok we’re all caught up! Come one Equius you have to see my letters!” You grab his hand and lead him into the living room. Your mom rolls her eyes at you but you ignore her. 

“Letters?” he asks. You leave him at the couch and gather up the four letters from your scavenger hunt this morning. Karkat is sitting in an armchair entertaining Arowin, looking like he might vomit and Kankri is talking to his dad seriously about the behavior at school dances. Silas looks amused rather than offended however. You regain Equius’s attention before he can chime in. 

“My secret admirer sent me on a scavenger hunt this morning! I’m going to meet her at the dance!” You tell him excitedly. He takes the letters and looks over them carefully. 

“Have you figured out who it is yet?” He asks. You shake your head, but that doesn’t deter you. The mystery makes it pretty exciting actually. 

“Don’t get your panties in a twist Zahhak, her secret admirer is only a little batshit crazy,” Karkat chimes in. 

“Karkat, you know you can’t use the word crazy, it is offensive to people with real mental illness,” Kankri scolds. 

“The only thing offensive here is your fucking face,” he retaliates. Arowin laughs and claps her hands.

“Ka!”

“Karkat, not in front of-” 

“Guys,” you break in, cutting Kankri off. You don’t know what got Karkat all worked up, his comebacks are usually much better. 

The doorbell rings then, breaking up the argument faster than you would have thought. 

“Were we expecting someone else?” Equius asks. You shrug, but go to get it anyways. Maybe it’s for you?

“Hey Nep,” Eridan says when you open the door. 

“What are you doing here?” You ask, eyes narrowing at him. Eridan has been more of a douche than usual lately. 

“I’m here for my date,” he tells you, “Nice dress green has always been your color.” He walks in, not waiting for you to invite him. You pause for a minute. You know your secret admirer is a girl, so it can’t be Eridan. So who is he even here for? You look over at Karkat, who is even paler than he had been just a second ago, then back at Eridan, whose smile has gone from predatory to soft and it clicks.

“Oh my god, you’re dating Karkat, you huge dick,” you accuse and punch him in the shoulder as hard as you can. 

“Nepeta!” Kankri gasps. 

\-------------------------------------

Terezi

Saturday, February 17, 7:30 PM

“Terezi!” Nepeta shouts, tapping your shoulder. You smile involuntarily, happy just to have her near. 

“Hey Kitten, you sound excited,” you say.

“Tonight is the night! I’m finally going to find out who my secret admirer is!” She hooks her arm through yours.

“Are you nervous?” You ask her. You kind of hope she is because you are beyond nervous. You feel jumpy, and practically electrified at everypoint her arm touches yours.

“I’m just excited. But I’ve got some time to kill, would you like to dance?” She asks.

“Only if you’re sure this mysterious writer won’t be jealous,” you reply. She laughs and leads you to the dancefloor. 

You like dancing, mostly because you can’t see how bad you are at it. Nepeta is a social dancer and she wants to hold your hands while she moves around. That’s probably a good thing because then you can’t accidentally hit anyone. Dance music is really loud so you can’t tell where anyone is but you like how you can almost feel it in your chest. Nepeta giggles at you and you make a face at her and twist a bit, tugging her with you. 

After awhile, Vriska glides past and whispers the time in your ear, and you can suddenly feel how sweaty you hands are. 

“Hey, do you want to go get some air?” You ask Nepeta.

“Sure, want me to take you there?” You nod. She walks with you, your hands still clasped together. As the noise fades aways, you become more aware of her humming along to the music. It makes you smile. You hope this goes well. 

“This is fun,” you say, “getting late though.”

“The dance has only just started,” she tells you. But you hear her dig her phone out to double check. She squeaks. 

“Survey says?” You ask.

“It’s almost eight! Oh I’m sorry Terezi, do you mind if I leave you here?” She squeezes your hand. You smile, she’s always been super thoughtful. 

“Actually, I have something to tell you,” you tell her. Your heart is pounding, and suddenly you feel tongue tied. 

“Oh, what is?” She doesn’t even sound rushed, even as you can feel her practically vibrate with excitement. This is it. 

“Nepeta, it’s me. I’m your secret admirer.” You give her a small smile. She doesn’t say anything.

There’s a beat of silence. You shift a bit, wishing you could at least figure out how she was reacting. If she was smiling or if she was panicking. Was she disappointed? Then suddenly it all breaks loose. 

“Holy shit, but but but but,” she lets go of your hand and grabs your shoulders. You grin wider. 

“But?” You encourage. 

“You’re so cool! And I’m just, well I’m just me! I mean...” She trails off. You can feel her moving, and assume she bouncing on her heels. 

“Hey, I like you,” you tell her, pretending to be offended.

“You do! You do, I just can’t-” she makes another squeal, and changes to grab at you face. Your face is starting to hurt from how big your grin is. 

“Is this a good answer?” You ask her, only feeling a little apprehensive. She tugs your face down, and mashes her lips against yours. Like most things Nepeta does, it’s rushed and messy, but also kind of perfect. 

“Slow down there, kitten,” you tease when she lets you go. She giggles. 

“Hey, Terezi, I like you too,” she whispers and you can hear the smile in her voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just an epilogue left! I love everyone for reading this! I haven't finished something in forever!!!!!!!!!!!


	12. Chapter 12

Nepeta

Monday, March 5, 3:00 PM

“This is so gross,” you complain to Equius, keeping your voice soft. You’re waiting for Eridan to let Karkat go. Your brother is beet red, and complaining but doesn’t seem particularly inclined to leave his boyfriend’s side. 

“Bite my ass Nepeta,” Karkat snarks. Eridan whispers something in his ear, and he pushes him away. You blanch, and elbow Equius. 

“See,” you tell him. He sniffs. 

“Other than the blatantly inappropriate public display of affection I see nothing wrong with-”

“Aw, I didn’t know we had you’re support, Eq,” Eridan says, pretending to be touched. Karkat rolls his eyes.

“Come on, we have to catch the bus,” you say, and grab his arm. You’ll bodily drag him there if you have too. 

“You could just come home with me, I have to be over later anyways,” Eridan says. Karkat looks tempted and you groan. 

“You didn’t ask mom or your dad,” you tell him. Luckily he seems to take this into account. 

“I’ll see you tonight babe,” he says, and pecks him on the cheek. You huff impatiently but let it go. 

You say goodbye to Equius and the two of you head towards the bus. 

The bus ride is longer than usual, and Galehk argues with the girl, Joey, the whole way there. Karkat squishes you against the window, surprisingly quiet. You spy Kankri sitting in the first row of seats. You really hope he doesn’t try to scold Galehk.   
Sooner than you think, you’re at your stop and you’re racing home. You’re barely in the door and on your way to your room before your phone rings. 

“Listen, we can not let Karkles be at the campaign tonight,” Terezi tells you. 

“I hear you but you know I have zero control over this out come,” you say. 

“Well it’s simple, when you’re getting into the car, just start talking loudly about all of the making we’re going to do,” she says. 

“You know I can’t do that,” you tell her, giggling. No one could have heard her but you feel your face heat up anyways. 

“Sure you can! And he’ll wig out!” She insists. 

“Not if he’s more determined to get makes outs himself!” You argue. 

“This is exactly why he can’t come, Eridan has the attention span of a goldfish,” Terezi complains. You can practically see her wrinkling her nose. There’s nothing she takes more seriously than DnD. 

“Anyways, I was hoping to get some kissing in for myself?” You ask. You’re all going to Terezi’s house today, and if you leave early enough you’ll be able to get some kissing in before it’s time to start. 

“Even more of a reason to leave shouty at home,” Terezi cackles and you laugh too. You think hers is infectious, it’s impossible to not laugh when Terezi does. 

“I’ll see what I can manage, but that means I’ve gotta go and do some damage control,” you say. 

“I’ll talk to you later then sweet cheeks!” And the phone clicks off. 

Now you’ve got to convince your mom to leave before Karkat is ready to go.

\-----------------------

Terezi

Monday, March 3, 5:00 PM

“This is so unfair,” Eridan whines. You’re all situated around you dining room table. It’s just you and Aradia, Tavros, Vriska, Nepeta and Eridan. And there’s no Karkat in sight. 

“The only person who thinks it’s unfair is youuuuuuuu,” Vriska tells him. You smirk and Nepeta giggles. 

“We get more accomplished when Karkat isn’t here,” Aradia tells him. 

“But Terezi and Nepeta get to be here,” he insists. 

“I, uh, don’t think that’s how that works..?” Tavros says uncertaintly. 

“Yeah, Prince, Nepeta and I are players,” you say. 

“And Karkat is just a pain in the ass,” Vriska adds on.

“I’m still not seeing the point,” he says.

“Anyways, last weekend I had to walk in on you two grinding in the living room,” Nepeta says. You and Vriska start laughing and Eridan makes a strangled noise. 

“Nep! That was private!” He practically shrieks.

“Obviously not!” She shouts back.

“Don’t worry babe, we’ll get them back some time,” you tell her between giggles. You pat her face and you can feel her grin at you. 

“But not right now, it’s time to get down to business,” Aradia says. 

A quiet takes over. You keep a hold of one of Nepeta’s hands under the table. Everything is good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS IS IT! THE END!   
> Thanks so so so so much for reading my self indulgent fic!   
> Once again this was for a Valentine's day exchange so princetpines, I hope you liked it and thanks for your patience!  
> This is only the second time I've ever finished a fic, so I'd really appreciate it if you'd leave a comment telling me what you think :)   
> Thanks so much guys!!!!!!!


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